Model Behavior

How do they sound?
I began by trying to replicate some of the classic meat and potatoes
rhythm and lead sounds that have been popular within the
last 50 years. Starting with AmpliTube 2, I went looking for a Vox
AC30 clean rhythm tone. After auditioning some presets I found
one that was built on an AC30 type of amp model that sounded
good to me. Others were more distorted or ultra clean. I tweaked
the amount of distortion, adding just a little to achieve that “jangly”
AC30 sound (fig 3). Most players consider this a “clean” tone,
but it usually has some distortion. I was very happy with the result
and saved it as “ac30Jangle A2”. Afterwards, I fired up Guitar Rig
2 and went searching for a similar sound. I found a great sounding
AC30 (fig 4) and just tweaked various parameters to taste. The
resulting clip, called “ac30Jangle G2”, was a little less ballsy– a
softer version of a similar sound.

One strategy you could experiment with would be to mix and
match tube types within a single amp model. Why not find a
sound based on a Fender amp that uses 6L6 power tubes but
then change the amp model power tubes to EL84s, as used on
an AC30. The resulting sound, impossible to create with real amps,
might be exactly the sound you are looking for.

Many guitarists are drawn to classic Fender amp tones, like the
renowned 1959 Bassman, the Twin Reverb and others. If you’re
talkin’ Fender, you’re talkin’ bright, twangy rhythms with plenty of
sparkle and muscular lead tones. I found just what I needed from
both applications. There were tons of variations on this classic
sound, such as Deluxe Reverb, Fender Twin and the above mentioned
Fender Bassman so it was difficult choosing a model. The
’59 Bassman, in particular, is a very popular amp, made famous
by Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan and countless others. I created
clips called “TremTwang A2” and “TremTwang G2” to illustrate
the results (figs 5-6) of these classic Fender tones. Both programs
also have nice models of the spring reverb found on these classic
amps – I was able to go all the way from subtle, to a Dick Daleinspired
surf tsunami!

Next on the list of tones to test was the revered Marshall sound.
This sound, like most others, is the result of the amplifier and the
speaker cabinet working together to arrive at the crunch we’ve
known and loved since the ‘60s. Whether it is a plexi stack or a
JCM 800, part of the tone recipe has long been a closed back
4x12 speaker cabinet, often with Celestion brand speakers. Since
this type of sound is so widely used, there were tons of great presets
right out of the box in both applications. I must say that the
plethora of presets were well named and gave great indication of
the sound of each. Sometimes they hint at the type of amp such
as Plex, JCM 800, JCM 900 and sometimes the name reflects the
type of effect featured, such as chorus or rotary speaker. I finally
found a fat, muscular setting in each program that sounded awesome
to my ears – the presets are called “MarshaLaw G2” and
“MarshaLaw A2” (figs 7-8). One thing to consider is that when
auditioning presets, you will often find something that sounds
about right, but when you put it in the context of a song you are
recording, it might need some adjustment. It’s very common to
have a big guitar rhythm sound that is “too big” when heard in the
track with everything else. Both programs give you many ways to
sculpt your sound with EQ, compression and effects.

Something worth mentioning is that both programs produced a
warm, focused and dynamically responsive sound. I was able to
adjust my tone by simply adjusting the volume knob on my guitar
– setting it full on for a great lead tone and then cleaning up for
chunky rhythm playing by rolling it down. Many tube fanatics look
for this dynamic capability in an amp, and it’s a thing of beautiful
simplicity to have these applications replicate that – no footpedals
to dance on or to get to from across the stage. Both Guitar Rig
2 and AmpliTube 2 have impressive dynamic response, to such a
degree that it brought a smile to my face.

In the midst of testing all of these amp and cab variations, I happened
upon a preset with an auto wah sound in Guitar Rig 2. It
was warm, sustained and would be great for a unique lead solo.
Both applications had something similar, but not quite the same.
The G2 wah preset followed the rhythm of the way I played each
note and the A2 version applied a wah that fluctuated at a predetermined
tempo. With that tempo locked to your track, the sound
is cool and “in sync.” Both are very useable sounds. Check out
AutoWah G2 and A2 (figs 9-10) and decide which you prefer.
For the modern rocker, I went in search of a solid-state metal/nu
metal amp sound – the type of high gain rhythm sound with
a tight, focused bottom-end that works well with drop tunings
and often has a “scooped” midrange. The tight bottom and well
defined sound is great for strumming of power chords. The resulting
SSCrunch clips are different but both are very useable (figs
11-12). Another very popular sound with the metal crowd is the
so-called “dual rectifier” sound made popular by amps from Mesa
Boogie. These are ultra high-gain sounds with more mids than
the above-mentioned solid-state crunch sounds, and are dripping
with attitude. Check out the DualRecto clips (figs 13-14) and you’ll
see what I mean. Just for fun, I took my DualRecto preset from
AmpliTube 2 and produced a variation called “DualRecto Rotary.”
It took all of 10 seconds to add the Leslie rotary effect to this preset
and the sound was fantastic.

When all is said and done, both programs serve up a huge dose
of great amp and effects tones. How do these applications differ?
I observed that Guitar Rig 2 had a longer list of effects, some classic
and quite unique called Modifiers. The Modifiers can con
trol various parameters in real time, yielding sounds that change
dramatically over time. An example would be a tremolo that starts
fast and then slows down, or delays that create an arpeggio. The
Modifier effect can follow the tempo of the internal metronome
or it can follow the master tempo of a song you are creating in
an application such as Pro Tools. The results can be quite wild.
There are also two included audio file players and a fun-to-use
Looping tool. Simply load a rhythm track into an audio file player
and jam along with it – it sure beats practicing to the lonely click
of a metronome. If you are into experimenting endlessly with
unusual sounds, Guitar Rig 2 may be the way to go. That certainly
does not diminish the amount of classic sounds available and the
included footpedal also makes it very useable in a live setting. It
did make me a bit nervous to have my MacBook Pro onstage if
truth be told, but no one knocked it over and all was fine.
AmpliTube 2 provides what I would describe as very warm and
organic sounds that are extremely convincing and very useable in
the modern studio and on stage with the forthcoming Stomp I/O
footpedal. I was always able to quickly find presets that hit the
nail on the head and it felt just like playing through a real amp.
AmpliTube 2 also includes an audio file player called Speed Trainer,
which makes it a snap to listen to a piece of music you are trying
to learn, slow it down without changing pitch and figure out that
elusive riff. I did find myself yearning for the forthcoming footpedal
so I could use it to rock out live.

Both programs are an absolute blast, and are truly incredible in their
depth and realism. I’ve only been able to scratch the surface here,
as there are far too many sounds to describe with both AmpliTube
2 and Guitar Rig 2. With the arrival of such incredible modeling software,
today’s guitarist has powerful tone tools at his/her fingertips.
Even the most stubborn tube amp fanatics should give these applications
a listen. The sounds are inspiring and versatile! Why not fire
up your PC or Mac with either and get rockin; for many of us, it’s
the only way we will ever have access to hundreds of great classic
and modern amp and effects combinations.

MODELING, iLife Style?

Readers with recent Apple computers (2004 and
later) have likely experienced the included free
application called GarageBand, a full-blown recording
studio environment. Included in the Apple iLife
suite, this stand alone application features quite
a few amp and effect simulations, ranging from
twangy Fender amps to high gain lead guitar tones.
You can even add effects like reverb, delay, distortion,
EQ, chorus, flanger and more to your sound
and save it for future use. I’ve personally used these
sounds to create a CD called The Garage Album
(thegaragealbum.com) and several of the sounds
are quite useable. With a little tweaking to allow for
different types of guitars and playing styles, these
sounds are fun and convenient. You also get keyboard
sounds, loops in many styles, and effects presets
that can be applied to vocal, guitar, bass and
synth sounds. Make no mistake, the amp/fx models
in dedicated programs such as Guitar Rig 2 and
Amplitube 2 are much more in-depth and useable
than those found in GarageBand, but if you’re on a
Mac and looking for a quick change of pace, you
might consider this.

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